Burglaries down to all-time low

With people staying at home, break-ins have declined to half of last year’s numbers

Burglaries have come down to an all-time low in Bengaluru.

Police attribute the declining numbers to the pandemic, which has kept people home.

A senior officer attached to the Central Crime Branch says burglaries had been on the decline in the last three years, but the pandemic has brought down the numbers further.

“The less developed areas have fewer cases and the posher, more crowded areas have bigger numbers,” a senior officer told Metrolife. “But overall, the numbers are at an all-time low.”

In 2018, Bengaluru saw 1,632 house break-ins, and the number dropped to 1,272 in 2019. In 2020, till October, only 664 were reported.

The north-east zone, covering Yelahanka, Bagalur, and Devanahalli, has seen the most dramatic decline. In 2018, it saw 104 burglaries, and in 2019, the number rose to 117. This year, the numbers have fallen to 66.

“This place has a floating population and is not as thickly populated as the rest of the city,” says an officer in charge of the area.

The north zone, which covers some of the older parts of the city such as Malleswaram, Mahalakshmi Layout and Rajajinagar, has also registered fewer cases this year. “We have busted some gangs active in this part of town. Heightened surveillance and arrests are a deterrent. Covid-19 is another factor,” says Dharmender Kumar Meena, Deputy Commissioner of Police, north Bengaluru.

In southern areas such as Jayanagar, Banashankari and Basavanagudi, instances of chain snatching, burglary and robbery have fallen by 50 per cent. “Some repeat offenders were migrant labourers, and they have left the city,” explains Harish Pandey, Deputy Commissioner of Police, south Bengaluru.

Bail easy to get

In most burglary cases, the accused are out on bail, but remain under trial for long periods.

“Sometimes, a burglar may have 40 cases against him, but he still gets bail. In some cases, the complainants turn hostile because the criminal is out on bail and threatens them into withdrawing the complaint,” adds Harish. The punishment for contacting the witnesses is enough of a deterrent, he says.

Suspect profile

Most of those involved in burglary cases hold part-time jobs, police say.

“They work by day and steal at night. The nature of their work is such that they scout for locked houses during the day and break in at night,” says a senior officer.

Many of those who burgle houses splurge on high-end mobile phones and bikes. Many burglars between 18 and 25 years are first-time offenders who just want to live it up, he says.

The more professional thieves are those between 35 and 45, whose only source of income in burglary. “They are usually convicted only in five of 20 crimes, and they use the rest of the booty to pay for their litigation,” says the officer.

Burglaries in City

2018 1,632

2019 1,272

2020 664*
(*Till end of October)